GNU sponsored chapters (7/7) by Amber Crosby, oxalice, and several anonymous sponsors at ko-fi. Thank you for your support!

This is the first chapter of today’s sponsored chapters is Ch 47 Part 3.

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Hearing his grandson’s words, Old Madam Zhai’s heart jumped in fright. She stroked her chest, hugged Zhai Qing’s closer, and asked in a panic: “My dear, did you sit on the ground today? The ground’s surface is so rough. How can your tender skin bear it? Let grandmother have a look. Is your butt alright?”

Hearing this, Zhai Qing suddenly twisted and refused to let his grandmother lift his clothes. He jumped off the Old Madam Zhai’s lap and said: “I’m fine! No need to look.”

“How can it be!” Old Madam Zhai exclaimed. She ordered one servant girl to fetch the ointment bestowed by the palace and let another manservant take the token of Cai Duke manor and run to call an imperial physician. In an instant, people in the room fell into a rushed panic. Second Madam Zhai wiped her tears and said: “It’s my fault. I didn’t pay attention for a moment and let shizi suffer such a grievance. I’m ashamed to die! So many servants looked over shizi, but he still met mishap. After Duke married a second wife, Qing ge’er would be raised by his stepmother. Would he be scolded and beaten without our knowledge?”

This remark was precisely the thorn in Old Madam Zhai’s heart. She sighed distressedly. Zhai Yanlin’s mind initially was not here, but for some reason, the word ‘second wife’ suddenly pulled him back to his sense. He stared at the chaotic scene and raised an eyebrow: “What’s happen?”

One of the servant girls wanted to please the masters, and immediately repeated Zhai Qing’s words with much exaggeration. In order to please the Duke, she deliberately described the shizi to be more tragic, and the woman from Cheng family to be very vicious. When Zhai Yanlin heard this, he was so angry that he almost laughed loudly: “Nonsense! I was also there at the time. Obviously, it’s you who deliberately release the dog and frightened the Cheng family’s womenfolk. Miss Cheng cannot let the dog harm people and ordered it to be caught. In which part she maliciously targeted you? You don’t admit your mistake, deliberately lying to shift the blame, truly making our Zhai family lose face! Someone come, take the rod, I will punish him with family law.”

When Zhai Qing heard that his father wanted to beat him with a rod, he cried out in fright. Old Madam Zhai was extremely distressed. She hugged Zhai Qing tightly and cried with him: “My dear, grandmother will accompany you!”

Second Madam Zhai also cried loudly and protected Old Madam Zhai behind her body, trying to talk reason with Zhai Yanlin and simultaneously ordered the servant girls to stop the manservant who was about to fetch the beating rod. The room instantly fell into chaos once again. Zhai Yanlin stared at the messy scene before him, his head severely ached. He massaged his temple and suddenly remembered Cheng Yujin’s words from today.

Even after half a day passed, her voice, smile, and appearance were still vivid in his mind, and even her words seemed to be ringing in his ears: “Duke Cai said that you are unable to control the shizi. Is it because Duke really helpless, or simply doesn’t want to discipline your son?”

Zhai Yanlin suddenly was caught hard. His mind instantly cleared. Right, he always knew that Zhai Qing couldn’t be disciplined and never change his behavior no matter how many scoldings he got. That’s why, every time Zhai Qing committed a mistake, Zhai Yanlin has been too lazy to inquire further and immediately ordered the rod to be fetched for him to beat the child. Old Madam Zhai naturally wouldn’t allow it, and Zhai Qing would cry loudly. In the end, no punishment was delivered. After a few times, Zhai Qing knew that he would never be punished no matter what he did, and caused even more trouble. Over time, it was simply a vicious cycle. Zhai Qing became more and more lawless, Zhai Yanlin became more and more powerless, and the relationship between father and son became more and more estranged.

Cheng Yujin, who was clearly just a young girl, could see the problem at a glance and hit the remark with only a few words. Zhai Yanlin vaguely felt that he couldn’t let this situation to develop. But his son knew that his grandmother was backing him and became more and more unruly. Except for beating him with a rod, what else could Zhai Yanlin do?

Zhai Yanlinwas feeling so powerless. He sighed helplessly. An idea vaguely flashed in his mind. But before he could get a hold of it, it disappeared.

Seeing that Zhai Yanlin’s anger had been subsided, Old Madam Zhai hurriedly ordered the servants to take Zhai Qing out. She tremblingly stepped in front of Zhai Yanlin, forbidding him to beat her grandson. Zhai Yanlin was extremely helpless. He only had this one mother. How could he bear her cry? Zhai Yanlin once again was forced to turn a blind eye and let Zhai Qing to be brought out.

Seeing this, Old Madam Zhai finally sighed in relief. Her son was already a dignified Duke and was one of the important members of the court. For them to repeatedly block Zhai Yanlin was undoubtedly an offense to his authority. Old Madam Zhai gestured at second Madam Zhai: “Second child’s wife, you can go back now.”

Second Madam Zhai walked out with the rest of the servants. After the mother and son were left alone, Old Madam Zhai asked Zhai Yanlin to sit down and began to ask: “Duke, what happened today?”

Zhai Yanlin repeated the event that transpired this afternoon. However, for some reason, he omitted the part when he encountered Cheng Yujin for the first time.

Old Madam Zhai pondered: “It turned out to be Cheng family’s eldest young miss. I have long heard that she was very skillful in managing the household. She is also beautiful, with a calm and gentle temperament, virtuous and filial, and talented. She certainly will be an excellent wife. But it’s a pity that her engagement was canceled.”

“What?” Zhai Yanlin was shocked. “Her engagement was canceled?”

Zhai Yanlin’s surprise was not without reason. As a man, he really couldn’t think that someone like Cheng Yujin would have her engagement canceled. Her former fiance actually let go of such beauty, was his brain damaged?

Old Madam Zhai didn’t mind her son’s improper reaction. In fact, when she first heard about this matter, she wasn’t less surprised than Zhain Yanlin.

As Old Madam Zhai spoke, there was contemplation in her eyes: “If what you said is true, and Cheng family’s eldest girl truly can control Qing ge’er, then it’s good. She is virtuous and sensible, and also very good at managing the household. She can be your second wife.”

 

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